Ross Revenge to host Radio Caroline anniversary broadcast

Radio Caroline celebrates 60 years of broadcasting at Easter 

 The legendary offshore station Radio Caroline celebrates its 60th anniversary at Easter with a special three-day broadcast from its pirate radio ship Ross Revenge on the Blackwater Estuary in Essex, marking six decades since the station defied the authorities and began broadcasting non-stop pop music to an audience greater than the BBC’s.

 Radio Caroline made its first unauthorised radio broadcast from a pirate radio ship off the coast of Essex on 28 March 1964, and became the backdrop for changes in fashion, lifestyle and youth culture which created Swinging England and the 1967 Summer of Love.  Many well-known broadcasters started their careers on Caroline, notably Tony Blackburn, Johnnie Walker, Simon Dee, Tony Prince, Keith Skues, Robbie Dale, Emperor Rosko, Andy Archer, Paul McKenna and Ray Clark.

The determination of various governments to silence the station and Caroline’s equal determination to continue caused a David versus Goliath battle that lasted for decades, creating much drama in the form of arrests, armed raids, groundings, shipwrecks and near-death experiences in heavy storms.

Many artists who credit their success to plays on Caroline have sent recorded messages for the broadcast, including The Kinks, Status Quo, Saxon, Chris De Burgh and Nils Lofgren, plus past presenters such as Tony Blackburn, Paul McKenna and Emperor Rosko,

More than 100 people will visit and tour Ross Revenge over the three-day broadcast from Good Friday 29 to Easter Sunday 30 March and meet presenters.  The ship has been home to Radio Caroline since the early 1980s.  Ross Revenge (built 1960) is a 200ft former deep sea fishing trawler converted into a fully functioning radio ship and is the last of its kind afloat.

Radio Caroline station manager Peter Moore said: “The broadcast promises a journey through the station's turbulent and often dramatic history, with classic tunes from the past six decades, memorable moments and interviews with key figures who shaped the station's legacy. We will be celebrating the nostalgia of the past 60 years and look forward to an exciting future as we continue to expand our broadcast operations.”

The anniversary will also highlight a crowdfunder campaign by the charity Ross Revenge (Home of Radio Caroline) which is raising funds to send the 64-year-old vessel for a major shipyard overhaul.

Radio Caroline broadcasts worldwide online, across England and northern Europe on 648 AM, on DAB and on Freeview Channel 277. Find out more at www.radiocaroline.co.uk

Source: Press release

Photo: Ross Revenge, by Colm O'Laoi